Mam's Trunks

I looked up beyond the trunks and through the open doorway into broad daylight and silence. The air was full of dust motes, but where were the soldiers?"It's too quiet out there," I said.Alice nodded. "Let's go and see," she suggested.Together we walked through into a large room, the cluttered living quarters of the Malkins. There were dirty sheets and sacks on the floor for sleeping on, and against the walls were piles of animal bones and the remains of old meals. But some of the food was fresh; broken plates and uneaten food littered the flags. It looked as if the wall had been breached while the Malkins were still eating breakfast and they'd fled, leaving everything behind.The ceiling was far above, with more steps spiraling up the inside of the tower. There was a smell of cooking smoke, but that masked the medley of stenches beneath it: unwashed bodies; rotting food; too many people living closely together for too long. Stones from the wall had tumbled down in a heap, crushing a table and scattering cooking pots and cutlery, and through that breach I could glimpse the trees of Crow Wood.

The gap was narrow but just wide enough to admit a man. Soldiers had obviously been inside, because the huge door was flung back and the drawbridge had been lowered. And there, in the distance, far beyond the moat, I could see them-soldiers in red coats, scurrying about like ants. They were hitching the gun carriage to the shire horses, preparing to move off, it seemed. But why hadn't they pursued the Malkins? It would have been easy enough for them to smash through the hatch and get down into the levels below. Why hadn't they finished the job after going to so much trouble? And where was Master Nowell, the magistrate?I heard a noise behind me, the slap of bare feet against cold flags, and turned to see that Mab had come into the room. She was smiling triumphantly."Couldn't have been better! Didn't just poison the water so we could free you," she crowed, looking directly at me. "Had another reason. We didn't want those gunners to see the Pendle beacon last night. Needed 'em to go to work this morning and blast a hole in the tower so that we could get the trunks out. And word must have come from the barracks at Colne, summoning 'em back. Well, we've done with em now, so the soldier boys can rush off to war and get themselves killed."

"War?" I demanded. "What war? What do you mean?"A war that'll change everything!" Mab crowed. "An invader's crossed the sea and landed far to the south. But although it's a great distance away, all the counties will have to band together and play their part. I saw it all! I saw the beacons sending their message from county to county, ordering the soldiers back to barracks, the fire seeming to leap from hilltop to hilltop. Saw the war coming. Scryed it all, I did. But it was all about timing in the end. Better than Tibb, I am."Oh, stop your crowing!" said Alice, trying to deflate her. "You can't see everything. You're not half as clever as you think you are. You can't see what's in Tom's boxes and you couldn't see the way into the tower. That's why you had to torture poor Maggie. Didn't see the wight coming either!"Didn't do too badly though, did I? But you're right, I could do even better. It all depends on the ritual. Depends on the night it's done. Depends whose blood I drink," Mab said slyly. "Tom's little niece would do the trick. Give me her blood at Lammas and I could see it all. All I want to see. Now give me the keys to those trunks, and I'll let you go."Sickened by what she'd just said, I raised my staff. I would have brought it crashing down on her head, but she just smiled at me as bold as brass and pointed through the big wooden door. My gaze followed her finger and there, beyond the drawbridge, I saw something that made my heart plummet into my boots.

The soldiers in red coats had gone. There were no shire horses. No gun carriage. Instead there were figures walking out of the trees and crossing the tussocky grass toward us. Others were much closer to the drawbridge -women in long gowns carrying blades. Mab had planned it all, down to the tiniest detail.The Malkins had fled down the tunnels. The soldiers had gone off to war, leaving the job unfinished. And now the Mouldheels were coming for the trunks. Mab had always intended to get them out of the tower this way. She had served well enough to win. The plan Alice and I had hatched was hopeless. Mab had outwitted us, and -we couldn't get the better of her now. I felt sick to my stomach. Ellie and Jack would be prisoners again -and the threat to their child was real. The cruel expression on Mab's face told me that."Think about it, Tom," she continued. "You owe me. I could have waited in the woods with the others, couldn't I? Just waited in safety for the soldiers to leave, just as I knew they would. Instead, I risked my life getting you into the tower so you could save your family. I saw what was going to happen. That the Malkins would have cut their throats as they escaped. I saw it as plain as the nose on your face; saw them coming into the cell with their blades. And I helped you save them. But I didn't just do it for nothing. You know what we agreed. So you owe me plenty. We have a bargain, and I hold you to it! I always keep my word, and I expect you to do the same!"

"You're too clever for your own good!" Alice said, suddenly seizing Mab by the upper arm. "But it ain't over yet. Not by a long way. Come on, Tom. We've got the lantern. We can escape back down the tunnels!"So saying, she forced Mab back into the storeroom and I followed at her heels, the possibilities whirling inside my head. The Malkins would still be down there, but they would be heading for the sepulchre entrance and might be well away by the time we reached it. It gave us half a chance. Better than staying here, at the mercy of the Mouldheels.Ellie was on her knees beside Jack, who was breathing heavily, his eyes closed. Mary was clutching at her mother's skirts, close to tears."Quick, Ellie, you'll have to help me," I said softly. "There's more danger ahead. We need to go back down the tunnels as fast as we can. You'll have to help me carry Jack."Ellie looked up at me, her expression a mixture of anguish and bewilderment. "We can't move him again, Tom. Not down there. It's too much to ask. He's too ill -he won't be able to stand it-"We've got to, Ellie. We've no choice." Mab started to laugh, but Alice pulled her hair sharply.As I moved to grasp Jack under the arms, Ellie shook her head and fell across his chest, using the weight of her body to prevent me from trying to lift him. Desperate, I considered telling her about the threat to her daughter. It was the only thing I could think of to get her moving.But I said nothing. It was already too late. The Mouldheels were already coming into the room -a dozen of them at least, among them Mab's sisters, Beth and Jennet. The group formed a circle about us, staring at us with cold, pitiless eyes, ready to use their blades.Alice looked at me, her own eyes full of despair. I shrugged hopelessly, and she released Mab."I should kill you now," Mab said to Alice, almost spitting the words out. "But a bargain's a bargain. Once the trunks are open, you can leave with the rest. Now, Tom, it's up to you."I shook my head. "I won't do it, Mab," I said. "The trunks belong to me."Mab leaned forward, grabbed Mary by the arm, and dragged her away from her mother. Beth threw her a knife, and she caught it expertly and held it toward the child's throat. As the little girl began to cry, her face filled with anguish, Ellie ran at Mab but didn't manage more than two steps before she was flung to the floor and pinned there, a knee in her back.

"Give me the keys or I'll take the child's life now!" Mab commanded.I lifted my staff, measuring the distance between us. But I knew I couldn't strike quickly enough. And what if I did? The others would be on me in seconds."Give them the keys, Tom!" screamed Ellie. "For pity's sake, don't let them hurt her!"I had a duty to the County, and because of that responsibility I'd already risked the lives of Ellie's family by refusing before. But this was too much. Mary was now-screaming hysterically, more upset by the plight of her mother than by the threat from the knife. Mab was going to kill her while I watched, and I couldn't bear it. I let the staff fall from my hands. I bowed my head, sick with despair. "Don't hurt her, Mab," I pleaded. "Please don't hurt her. Don't hurt any of them. Let them all go and I'll give you the keys…"Alice, Ellie, and Mary were taken out of the tower and escorted toward the distant trees; two of the witches carried Jack between them like a sack of potatoes. After I'd agreed to surrender the keys, Alice hadn't spoken again. Her face was a blank. I'd no idea what she was thinking.